In a video on YouTube, Peter Russell reviews the various theories on the nature of consciousness and how they evolved over the centuries.

In the video, Peter builds a case for an objective universe paradigm, where consciousness is the source of everything. This is opposed to a subjective universe paradigm that insists there is a “real” physical world that exists regardless of whether consciousness is present. Even though I had read that the scientist Stephen Hawkin had proposed an objective universe theory, this was the first time I had heard the theory explained. It fit nicely with the experiences I had regarding creating your own basketball universe.

Peter explained that consciousness is a big mystery to scientists. We understand how parts of the brain are involved in various thoughts and feelings, but we don’t understand how consciousness interacts with the physical body. We know that we are conscious, but consciousness appears to be non-physical in nature.

Peter theorized that time, space, and matter are different fluctuations in a consciousness field. One analogy for this would be a movie projector. Light from the projector bulb shines through a film, which filters the light in different ways, which in turn projects images on the screen. When we watch a movie, we can get very involved in the experience, so much so that we think it is real. However, it is filtered light that appears as a simulated reality. In the analogy, pure consciousness is like the light from the projector bulb, while different fluctuations in the energy field act the light-filtering action of the film. The result is a physical reality with time, space, and matter.

Peter built upon this analogy by discussing the nature of light itself. Light does not have any mass, and like consciousness, appears to be non-physical in nature. Light is known to travel at 186,000 miles per second, but Einstein’s Relativity Theory showed that light travels at this constant speed for each observer no matter how fast the observer is traveling. However, time and space become relative in Einstein’s theory. The faster you get towards the speed of light, time and space begin to collapse. In fact, from light’s point of view, traveling at the speed of light, there is no time or space involved. Light emitted from the sun and traveling to the earth, from light’s point of view, is both emitted from the sun and absorbed by the earth at the exactly the same instant. There’s no time or space involved.

Peter explained this paradox through the lens of consciousness by saying that consciousness expands time and space outward from a point of nothingness, which results in light appearing to travel through that expanded reality. Another way of saying this would be, as you create a basketball universe, the growing basketball of consciousness expands time and space thus creating a physical world as your playground.

Peter concluded his presentation by exploring the nothingness that seems to be the home to consciousness and light. He explained that various yogis had used meditation to stop their minds, and thus were able to experience the pure “I am” consciousness. Peter suggested that this “I am” feeling is the same in all human beings. He also provided examples from numerous gurus who said that this pure “I am” consciousness is divine, the consciousness of the creator.

If you would like to view the video, I’ve embedded it below. There are also links to several of Peter Russell’s books.